Profile

Dominic Cordisco is a partner with Drake Loeb PLLC.  He began his legal career as the Regional Attorney for Region Three of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, providing legal services for the agency in areas such as the State Environmental Quality Review Act ("SEQRA"), wetlands regulation, storm water control, and municipal water and wastewater regulation and enforcement.  This strong background in environmental matters proved invaluable upon his entry into private practice, where he works with a diverse client base consisting of municipalities and private clients on projects involving land use, development, environmental law, and municipal law issues.

His unique knowledge and experience makes him a sought after lecturer on specialized topics within his practice including SEQRA, wetlands regulation, endangered species, mining, underground storage and oil spills.  He appears regularly before the New York Association of Towns, the New York State Bar Association, the New York Planning Federation and the Orange County Municipal Planning Federation. As the Chairman of the Board of Directors for Orange County Partnership, a Member and former Co-Chair of the Alliance for Balanced Growth, and Co-Chair of the New York State Bar Association - Environmental Law Section’s Committee on Wetland Regulation, Dominic is at the forefront of the issues affecting his clients.

In 2012, the Orange County Partnership honored Dominic with its MVP Most Valued Partner award, and in 2013 he received the Henry Award for Valley Visionaries from Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress.

Professional Affiliations

Co-Chair, New York State Bar Association, Environmental Law Section, Committee on Wetland Regulation

Member, New York State Bar Association

Member, Orange County Bar Association

Community Activities

Chairman, Board of Directors, Orange County Water Authority

Member, Board of Directors, Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation

Member, Board of Directors, Orange County Citizens Foundation

Member, Board of Directors, Black Rock Forest Consortium

Secretary, Cornwall-on-Hudson Elementary School Parent-Teacher Organization

Former Chairman, Board of Directors, Orange County Partnership

Former Co-Chair, Alliance for Balanced Growth

Former Member, Board of Directors, Port Jervis Industrial Development Agency

Notable

  • Author: "Shifting from Protection to Enhancement: The New Paradigm in Endangered Species Regulation in New York," Environmental Law in New York, Berle, Kass & Case (Edited by Michael Gerrard, Esq.)
  • Author: "Navigating Through Rapanos: An Update on Federal Wetlands Issues,” The Municipal Lawyer, a publication of the New York State Bar Association
  • Author: "Court Dismisses Challenge to NYSDEC's 2010 Endangered Species Regulations,” The Municipal Lawyer, a publication of the New York State Bar Association
  • Author: "Six Years Means Six Years: The Speonk Fuel Decision and Oil Spill Cost Recovery Actions," The New York Environmental Lawyer
  • Author: “DEC Commissioner Designates Town Board as Lead Agency For Project Adjacent to DEC Owned and Maintained Park”; “NYSDEC Designates Town Board and Not Planning Board as Lead Agency for Waste-to-Energy Facility”; “Environmental Review, Endangered Species and Timing of Preliminary Plat Review Addressed by New York Appellate Court;” Law of the Land Blog
  • Co-Author: "Bright with Promise: A Pictorial History of SUNY Plattsburgh," The Donning Company, 1989
  • Lecturer, “Navigating Through Rapanos: An Update on Federal Wetlands Issues,” New York State Bar Association
  • Lecturer, “SEQRA,” New York State Association of Towns 2009; Orange County Municipal Planning Federation 2008 and 2009
  • Moderator, Marcellas Shale Issues, New York State Bar Association Fall Meeting, October 23, 2009
  • Lecturer, "Wetlands," Environmental Law Section Fall Meeting, New York State Bar Association, 2007
  • Lecturer, "How to Handle a Mining Case in New York," New York State Bar Association, 2002
  • Recipient, Fordham University School of Law Murray Award for Outstanding Public Service
  • Moot Court Judge, National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition

News

Admissions

  • 1995, New York
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York

Education

State University of New York at Plattsburgh, B.A.,1990

Fordham University Law School, J.D., 1994

  • Recipient, Fordham University School of Law Murray Award for Outstanding Public Service
  • Finalist, Fordham University School of Law Wormser Moot Court Competition
  • Former Moot Court Judge, Senior Prize Trials, Albany Law School, 1998 – present
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